I could try catching you up, telling you all that has been happening here, but it seems pointless really. Not that I view the last almost 8 weeks of near perfect silence unworthy of telling, but because it is the “trying to jot everything down” thing that has been causing the writer’s block.

Where to start, organizing my thoughts, not writing 2000 words, losing half of you after only 750, I just couldn’t make it happen.

So the next best thing is to simply think back a few days, look at today and a bit into the future. Much less overwhelming, wouldn’t you say?

Although it has been a bit uneven temperature wise, Spring has been treating us amazingly well. We are outside almost everyday, rain or shine, cold or warm, and nothing has been more healing on our bodies, mind and spirits. Our feathered friends have been coming back in droves, bringing with them joy and song. Our yard has been filled with chickadees (pictured above), goldfinches (pictured above), savannah sparrows, chipping sparrows, blue jays, white-breatsed nuthatches, robins, cedar waxwings, house finches (about 100 of them in line of sight as I type this) common redpolls (pictured above) and mourning doves. The cats have been having a fit watching them fly around the yard, chirping menacingly through the windows.

We’ve been rediscovering some of our favorite haunts and soaking up every moment of sun we can get. Our greatest thrill has been the return of our days on the beach. The St-Lawrence River has gone from completely covered with ice to free and clear in a little over one week and our water’s edge exploration has begun. The icebergs are spectacular this year and the kids can’t get enough of them. It’s been so amazing to get out and dirty without fear of freezing in place. We even found an howl nest (last picture)! How cool is that?

I’ve been spending more time in my craft room lately and it has felt amazing. Easter presents for the kids stayed simple (mushroom peg family for Little Miss and rice tossing bags and rope bowl for Little Man) and a nice comfy paper pieced pillow was made for my niece’s 10th birthday. And as I have mentioned in one of my previous posts, crafting, like reading, truly is like riding a bike. The more you create, the more you want to create and I’ve been loving every moment of it.

We couldn’t be happier with the way our Little Man has been doing in therapy. We’ve seen such progress in his everyday way of being. We’ve been focusing on life skills and he’s been enjoying helping around the house and feeling useful. He has started to undress himself when prompted and will clear his place setting when meals are done. He helps undo the groceries and love putting the heavy stuff away. He puts on his boots when asked and will eat more runny foods (like applesauce or yogurt) with a spoon now. We’ve been practicing washing ourselves in the bath tub and combing our hair.

Another big thing we’ve been working on is his behavioral quirks. Much of his impulse control issues are being addressed in therapy and we’ve seen such improvement in his patience and the intensity of his tantrums. He’s also trying to speak more and more. The sounds aren’t quite words yet, but they sound like words and we are just on the edge of our seats, waiting for them to overflow from that smiling little face.

Last, but not least, we are in the midst of the emergence of imaginative play. For those who don’t know, many kids with autism have a lot of issues with imagination. It was actually one of the big red flags we had mentioned to the psychologist conducting his initial assessment. Not anymore though : He will put his peg dolls on the back of his dinosaurs and have them take a ride. He will take his baby in the tub with him and wash him. He loves putting costumes on for role playing and having imaginary “conversations” on the phone. His favorite thing these days is taking the toy guitars and having us play together while dancing.

He makes us so proud everyday, I can’t even find the words.

And I truly believe that all of his amazing developing social skills are mainly because of this little lady. What a big sister he has.

So there you go. We are here again : Happy, healthy, connected and blessed.

Wishing you an amazing week-end! xo

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About Yanic A.

Hello to all of you and thank you for stopping by!
My name is Yanic. I'm a wife to a wonderful husband, a mother of 2 beautifully complex and unique children and a lover of all things inspiring. Having started a personal journey of self discovery when I found out I was pregnant with my daughter 4 years ago, I've since embraced a daily life of simpler pleasures and gratitude. As we get to know each other, you will know me as a quilter, a gardener, a Tao cultivator, a vegetarian foodie, a true believer in a healthy family life as being the secret to my happiness and hopefully as time goes on, a friend... I will try to share with you my days as they unfold, speaking of my happy successes without censoring my challenges, trying to make this blog a true portrait of the ever-changing path that I have chosen for myself.
I'm hoping to find in these pages others to share with and learn from, bringing to light the absolute connection in all things and people, showing this world as being a true community.

Yes, the ddimples aare to die for… that entire face just makes you want to kiss it. Thank you so much for your encouragement and support.
Oh! Mr. Potato Head is huge here… So much so that we have them on rotation or else he won’t do anything else. So we bring them out for a month or 2 and then, they go away for a few months.

This post makes me so happy! I am so glad that all is well (especially with your little guy) and that the spring is off to a great start! I adore those mushroom peg dolls! Too cute! Have a wonderful weekend! xo

You are welcome Sophie, thank you for sticking around and taking the time… I haven’t exactly been the most exciting blogger to keep track of.
Our nature is ccoming alive right now. I have a feeling I’ll be much more inspired. And yes! Little Man is just proving to the world how incredible he is. 🙂

Your little man looks so grown up. Happy to hear things are going well with therapy, and that you are seeing the benefits. The birds are returning here too, although I am sure Mother Nature is confusing many of them…we have snow this morning and more coming tonight, and will be below zero the most of the week. Our poor feathered friends.

Oh no! We are having freezing temps here too, but we have also had many under zero stretches over the last month so the birds that have come home might not be too confused. How strange that you’ve had no snow most of winter but are getting snow in April. LOL! Crazy seasons we’ve been having.

you are sweet. there is no need to worry about the absence! this is your space and your place to write, we are the readers who are lucky to see what you are up to. I’m thrilled to read you are happy and living life fully and busily with the kids. I’m glad your son is doing well in therapy and you see such great progress! wonderful news!

It is you that is sweet dear Karen. Thank you for stopping by and “sticking around” for me to share our little life. I am looking forward to being present more. I’ve missed my space and everyone that comes in it.

Ah, the icebergs are amazing!! But I must admit that I am glad about being in the middle of Spring already 😉 And wow for the progress of your son. I always have the utmost respect for how you guys are managing everything – your little man has the most loving, supportive and creative home he could wish for! Hugs from Switzerland!

You are so sweet my friend. thank you… It really hasn’t been that hard : He is such a happy little guy 99% of the time, I know he will shine trhough all this. We are just lucky to be invited for the ride.

And yes! I love that Spring is finally here, although we are having quite a winter cold snap right now. But the sun has still be warm and snow is melting everyday.

I am glad to hear that life is going in the right direction for you all and that your absence here has been because you have been living that life to the full. This is your space to write in, I always love to drop by and read but I do understand when you need to pause and concentrate your energies elsewhere.

Oh my, it’s been a while since I last visited your blog. Your kiddos have grown so much, especially Little Man. I love reading about the progress he is making and how it wonderfully affects your family. Beautiful and inspiring as always! ❤

Hello Milica, welcome back. So nice of you to drop by. YES! They have grown so much. I can’t even express how much I am “NOT” in the presence of babies anymore. Thank you for the kind words. The journey has been an interesting one so far. We are looking forward to many more adventures. 🙂

i love this post! and you are so right! i often struggle after an absence whether to catch up on the blog or not… but that is the problem… it is a struggle. i loved reading about your winter experiences up there… i have never seen an iceberg before. i LOVE the crafts your making, especially the little toadstool peg people. SO cute! i am so happy and excited for your family with little mans steady progress.

Thank you for your kind words. You are such a beautiful artist yourself. Winter is such a magical time here. We make it a point to bring it as much to life as possible. So much goes on, you just don’t see it. 🙂 And YES! Little Man is just hitting it out of the ball park constantly these days and we couldn’t be happier. 🙂

He is doing so very very well… His therapist calls him her little champion. She is very prooud of his progress. We’ve notice such huge changes. Just the facct that he will answer to his name more now nd that he will listen when I ask him to stop or come here… you never realize how huge those little things are until you don’t have them.

And yes… she is such a big part of his life. The love between those two is so palpable…